Substack Is Private. Here’s How Investors Can Play It
No, Substack is not publicly traded. Retail investors usually have to wait for an IPO, look at comparable public stocks, or consider private secondary access if they’re accredited.
No, Substack is not publicly traded. Retail investors usually have to wait for an IPO, look at comparable public stocks, or consider private secondary access if they’re accredited.
Substack sits at the center of the creator economy: paid newsletters, podcasts, video, chat, Notes, and live video all rolled into one platform. That mix has helped it scale fast, with more than 5 million paid subscriptions reported in early 2025 and a fresh $100 million funding round that valued the company at $1.1 billion.
That’s why investors keep asking how to buy Substack. The short answer is that you can’t buy it on a stock exchange today, but there are a few realistic ways to think about exposure, from waiting for a possible IPO to using public-market proxies. Here’s what matters.
What is Substack?
Substack is a subscription publishing platform for writers, journalists, podcasters, and other creators. The business model is simple: creators publish content on Substack, and the company takes 10% of paid subscription revenue, with Stripe processing fees on top. It was founded in 2017 and is headquartered in San Francisco, with SEC crowdfunding materials listing 111 Sutter St, 7th Floor, San Francisco, CA 94104.
The company’s scale is still only partly disclosed, but it said in early 2025 that it had more than 5 million paid subscriptions, up from 3 million in February 2024 and 2 million in 2023. The 2023 SEC crowdfunding filing listed 76 employees at the time. Substack has also expanded beyond newsletters into video posts, live video, chat, Notes, and TV app support, which makes it more than a simple email tool and puts it in the middle of the broader creator monetization market.
Is Substack publicly traded?
No, Substack is currently a privately held company, not a public stock. I found no exchange listing, no ticker, and no S-1 filing. The company’s SEC crowdfunding filing identifies it as Substack Inc., a Delaware corporation, and the ownership structure appears venture-backed and founder-led.
The founders are Chris Best, Hamish McKenzie, and Jairaj Sethi. The most recent disclosed valuation I found was $1.1 billion from its July 2025 Series C, which suggests private investors still own the company rather than public shareholders.
When will Substack go public?
I found no S-1 filing and no credible public signal that Substack has announced IPO plans. The public record points the other way: private fundraising, product expansion, and a focus on creator growth rather than a near-term listing. I also did not find credible analyst or banking chatter pointing to an imminent IPO.
If Substack ever does go public, the usual path would be an S-1 filing, a roadshow, and a listing months later. For now, the most recent marker is the July 2025 Series C at a $1.1 billion valuation, with the company saying the capital will go toward better tools, broader reach, and deeper support for creators.
Get AI research on any stock
Instant reports, daily intelligence, and an AI analyst in your pocket.
For retail investors, the first realistic option is to wait for an IPO. If Substack ever lists, you’d buy it the same way you buy any new public stock through a brokerage account after the shares begin trading. Right now, though, there is no public listing to buy.
There is no public parent stock to use as a shortcut, because Substack does not sit under a listed parent company. The closest practical alternative for most investors is to buy public companies with similar business models or customer overlap, which I cover below.
Private secondary markets can sometimes offer access to shares of private companies, but those routes are generally limited to accredited investors and availability changes constantly. I’m not confirming live access on any specific platform here, so treat that as a possible private-market route, not a guaranteed one.
Closest publicly-traded alternatives
The closest public-market alternatives shareholders look at are Spotify (SPOT), Reddit (RDDT), and Intuit (INTU). Spotify is the nearest comp for creator monetization plus podcasts and audio distribution. Reddit is a useful proxy for audience engagement and community network effects, even though it is not subscription-first. Intuit is the closest public name for email marketing and creator/business tooling, though it is much broader than Substack.
These are imperfect comparisons, but they’re the public stocks investors usually use when they want exposure to the same behavior patterns: creators building audiences, monetizing attention, and using software to do it. None of them is a direct substitute for owning Substack, but they are the nearest listed analogs.
Recent news
The biggest recent development was Substack’s July 17, 2025 Series C: the company raised $100 million at a $1.1 billion valuation. The round was led by BOND and The Chernin Group, with participation from Andreessen Horowitz, Rich Paul, and Jens Grede. Substack said the money would go toward better tools, broader reach, and deeper support for writers and creators.
Product expansion has also continued. Substack has added and expanded video posts, live video, chat, Notes, and TV app support, and its help center now discusses age verification requirements in the UK and Australia. That points to a platform still building out its product and compliance infrastructure rather than preparing a public listing.
Verdict
If you want to invest in Substack itself, the honest answer is that you can’t buy it publicly today. The company is private, last valued at $1.1 billion, and there’s no S-1 or public listing to trade.
For most retail investors, the actionable path is to watch for a future IPO and, in the meantime, use public proxies like SPOT, RDDT, and INTU to get exposure to adjacent parts of the creator economy. If you’re accredited and have access to private secondary markets, you can also look for private-share opportunities, but that’s a limited, non-public route.
▌Common Questions
Frequently asked questions
+Is Substack publicly traded?
No, Substack is currently a privately held company, not a public stock. I found no exchange listing, no ticker, and no S-1 filing. The company’s SEC crowdfunding filing identifies it as Substack Inc., a Delaware corporation, and the ownership structure appears venture-backed and founder-led.
+When will Substack go public?
I found no S-1 filing and no credible public signal that Substack has announced IPO plans. The public record points the other way: private fundraising, product expansion, and a focus on creator growth rather than a near-term listing. I also did not find credible analyst or banking chatter pointing to an imminent IPO.
+How can you invest in Substack?
For retail investors, the first realistic option is to wait for an IPO. If Substack ever lists, you’d buy it the same way you buy any new public stock through a brokerage account after the shares begin trading. Right now, though, there is no public listing to buy.
▌The Daily Briefing · Free
A new stock idea, every evening.
One stock worth watching each weekday, plus the analysis behind it. Free, in your inbox.
